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Max

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English and German diminutive of Maximilian or Maxwell
"greatest"

Max Origin and Meaning

The name Max is a boy's name of German, English, Aboriginal origin meaning "greatest".

Max was derived from Maximilian, a Latin name that originated from the Roman family name Maximus. The character name Max in the children's classic Where the Wild Things Are had an impact on baby namers. Max is a widely used name internationally.

Max was transformed from cigar-chomping grandpa to rosy-cheeked baby in the 1980s, along with card-playing partners Sam and Jake. Never quite as popular as it seemed, Max is now close to the the highest it's been on the Social Security list since 1917, after which German-sounding names went out of favor.

Max has been a popular starbaby name for decades, most recently for the sons of Christina Aguilera, Cynthia Nixon and Charlie Sheen, while other celebs, such as Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, have used more formal appellations--Maximilian, Maxwell, Maxfield--on the birth certificate to get to the nickname Max. Skater Scott Hamilton put his own spin on it by maximizing the spelling of his son's name to Maxx.

Warning: Max has long been among the most popular dog names.

# 156 in the US

Max Rank in US Top 1000

# 104 on Nameberry

Max Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Max Popularity

20 Names Similar to Max

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Max.

Famous People Named Max

  • Max Emilian VerstappenDutch Formula 1 Driver
  • Karl Emil Maximilian "Max" WeberGerman sociologist
  • Max Beckerguitarist in rock band SWMRS
  • Carl Adolf "Max" von SydowSwedish actor
  • Max GreenfieldAmerican actor
  • Maximillian Kolenda "Max" PaciorettyAmerican ice hockey player
  • Maximillion Drake "Max" ThieriotAmerican actor
  • Maximillian Weisner "Max" Starks IVAmerican NFL football player
  • Maxwell McCandless "Max" UngerAmerican NFL football player
  • Maximillian Alberto "Max" GeorgeEnglish singer of The Wanted
  • Max ChangminSouth Korean singer of duo TVXQ
  • Max LloydJones, American actor
  • Max CharlesAmerican actor
  • Max Stanleyaka Maxmoefoe, Australian YouTuber
  • Max Carver (born Robert Maxwell Martensen)American actor; twin brother Charlie Carver
  • Max PerlichAmerican actor
  • Maxwell M. "Max" ScherzerAmerican baseball player
  • Max Karl Ernst Ludwig PlanckGerman theoretical physicist; Nobel Prize winner
  • Max BornGerman physicist and mathematician; Nobel prize winner
  • Max Theodor Felix von LaueGerman physicist; Nobel prize winner
  • Max Ludwig Henning DelbrückGerman,€“American biophysicist; Nobel prize winner
  • Max RiemeltGerman actor
  • Max Factor (born Maksymilian Faktorowicz)Polish,Jewish founder of cosmetics giant Max Factor & Company
  • Max Brooksson of actors Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft
  • Max Bernsteinson of screenwriter Nora Ephron and journalist Carl Bernstein
  • Max Fuseson of actress Olivia Hussey and musician Akira Fuse
  • Max Samuel Spielbergson of film director Steven Spielberg
  • Max Toddson of reality TV personality Lisa Vanderpump and Ken Todd
  • Max Cohnson of singer Marc Cohn
  • Maxwell J. "Max" Heardlate son of actor John Heard
  • Max Greathouse Allenson of Kara Kennedy; grandson of Sen. Ted Kennedy
  • Max McGinleyson of actor John McGinley
  • Max Favreauson of actor Jon Favreau
  • Max Whitfieldson of singer Patricia Lewis and Mark Whitfield
  • Max Ullrich (b. 2007)son of cyclist Jan Ullrich
  • Max Hugh Gorman (b. 2008)son of actor Burn Gorman
  • Max Liron Bratman (b. 2008)son of singer Christina Aguilera and Jordan Bratman
  • Maxwell Mark "Max" Croft (b. 2008)son of singer Kerry Katona and Mark Croft
  • Max Sheen (b. 2009)son of actor Charlie Sheen
  • Max Aaron Gottfried (b. 2009)son of comedian Gilbert Gottfried
  • Max Schmeichel (b. 2010)son of footballer Kasper Schmeichel
  • Max Corden (b. 2011)son of TV host James Corden
  • Max Ellington NixonMarinoni (b. 2011), son of actress Cynthia Nixon
  • Max Wilde Presnall (b. 2012)son of musicians Derek and Jamie Presnall
  • Max Neville Ling (b. 2012)son of AFL player Cameron Ling
  • Max O'Gara (b. 2014)son of rugby union player Ronan O'Gara
  • Max Red Caspe (b. 2015)son of actress Casey Wilson
  • Max Bowie Band (b. 2016)son of singer Alex Band of The Calling
  • Max Kermanlead singer of the Arkells
  • Max Millercomedian
  • Max Rainier Casiraghi (b.2018)son of Andrea Casiraghi and Tatiana Santo Domingo
  • Max Walker Lauren (b.2018)son of David and Lauren Bush Lauren. Great,grandson of George H.W. and Barbara Bush.
  • Max Mario Fletcher (b. 2018)son of singer Tom Fletcher & author Giovanna Fletcher.
  • Max Charles Murphy (b. 2018)son of American comedian and actor Eddie Murphy
  • Max Milo Peck (b. 2018)son of American actor and comedian Josh Peck

Max in Pop Culture

  • Maximiliano (Max) Kellermain male character in Scarlett Avery’s book “Undeniable Fascination”.
  • Maxmain character in Maurice Sendak's "Where the Wild Things Are"
  • Maxdog in Dr. Seuss' "How the Grinch Stole Christmas"
  • "Mad Max" Rockatanskymain character in the "Mad Max" movie series
  • Max Bialystockmain character in movie and musical "The Producers"
  • Max Fischermain character in movie "Rushmore"
  • Maxcharacter of Canadian dance show "The Next Step"
  • Maxrabbit character on animated series "Max and Ruby"
  • Maxcharacter on animated series "Dragon Tales"
  • Max Evanscharacter on TV's "Roswell"
  • Max Blumcharacter on TV's "Happy Endings"
  • Max Branningcharacter on British soap "EastEnders"
  • Max Millerpsychic on early season of "Supernatural"
  • Max de la Costacharacter in movie "Elysium"
  • Maxmain character in movie "Sharkboy and Lavagirl"
  • Maxwell "Max" Smartmain character on TV's "Get Smart"
  • Max Thundermancharacter on TV's "The Thundermans"
  • Maximillion "Max" Galacticacharacter in video game "Ace Attorney"
  • Maxcharacter on TV's "24"
  • Maxcharacter in Comet Man comics
  • Maxtalking spaceship in movie "Flight of the Navigator"
  • Maxcharacter in the Pokemon animated series
  • Maxrabbit character in the Sam & Max series
  • Max Vandenburgcharacter in Markus Zusak's "The Book Thief"
  • Max Britskymain character in "Max" by Howard Fast
  • Max Rhaymercharacter from the 2016 TV movie "Backstabbed"
  • Max Factorcosmetic company
  • Maxmain character in the Rooster Teeth animated series "Camp Camp"
  • Maximilian 'Max' Millercharacter from Netflix's "Greenhouse Academy"
  • Max Kantecharacter from "Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir"
  • Max Fullercharacter on Netflix,series "Fuller House"
  • Max Goldmancharacter in the 1993 film "Grumpy Old Men" & the 1995 sequel "Grumpier Old Men"
  • played by Walter Matthau